Thursday, July 5, 2012

What an incredible set! What an incredible band! Screaming ,growling, bouncing from the first note of the first song, of the set! These two stepping titans from Tulsa Oklahoma took the stage by storm. If you had only heard of Outline In Color, or only watched their videos before the show , You're an instant fan now and a thoroughly entertained one at that. Presenting their 2010 singles and ep hits as well as dropping some new tracks, this band let the Conservatory know they are still as powerful and potent today, as they were ever!

The heat was the 500 hundred pound gorilla in the room but it just a monkey on their backs as they stripped shirts off and open and delivered a smoking hot set of growls and clean vocals via KC and Trevor. The Guitars of Forrest ,See Jay and Michael were almost symphonic as they shredded, slapped, thumped and screamed like some unholy machine, whos driving heartbeat was Austins , cardiac arrest rhythm on drums!

It's no wonder the crowd screamed along to the ep songs and were always at stages edge during the show. This was the bands second time at the Conservatory (as per the interview.) and it seemed they were determined to create their own "thunder" that night!

http://www.outlineincolor.com/ Trevor, Forrest, See Jay & KC of OUTLINE IN COLOR, discuss heart and history and future hits after their set was finished at the Conservatory. 6/27/12 Secrets/Hands like houses/Alice Awaits, Forrest, See Jay & KC of OUTLINE IN COLOR, discuss heart and history and future hits after their set was finished at the Conservatory. 6/27/12 Secrets/Hands like houses/Alice Awaits

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

I have been following this band since last year, when they were talking about the full length album being recorded, and leaking tracks and some studio video of themselves. They said that "next year", would be an active and important year for them as they were putting together tours and promotional events.

Fast forward one year, They have been on many concert billings this year and getting their name out. They also have this ep out UPRISING! It is for sale now and is a preview of the full length album due out later this year, and well...... I'll let the drummer , Jess Mickle tell you more about it and what ALICE AWAITS has in store for it's fans!

Saturday, June 16, 2012

After what seemed like ages of trying to catch the Violent Affair in a local show, my window of opportunity, had arrived. They were now performing locally(in OKC) with the Dirty Mugs(Tulsa) and The Street Dogs, (Boston Mass.)at the Conservatory on May 21. Finally, after all the crappy youtube videos, and band page surfing, I would finally get to see Oklahoma citys famous hardcore punk band, with an exciting ,original band from Tulsa, the Dirty Mugs. Once I searched the Street Dogs, I was even more excited about the evening.

I arrived early and waited outside with a small crowd of faithful fans. I had my digital camera and video cam in a bag, and was asked if I was "media." I said not really just a fan too. Show time started and the Conservatory front door opened and I was the first in the door, headed straight to the Violent Affair table to snag a black n red logo Tee Shirt, then promply claimed my spot in front of the stage. V.A was opening.

One by one Brian, Dom,Zach,jesse and Ryan took the Stage, for sound check. The crowd wore V.A. t shirts and sported mohawks of biblical proportions, and were pierced ,studded and tattooed appropriately for this evening. I was not. I just had a black camera bag an blue jeans. "ANYHOO", the show began with much screaming jumping and bass thumping, and a frenzy of mosh pit ,slamming, and fist pumping! This band was on fire on the first song, no warm up needed! Powering thru the 2010 album (Stand Trial.Unrepentant records) songs, mixed with new ones from their Latest album, A Call To Arms/ Jailhouse reocords. 2012.

I feel Their set was energetic and brutally refreshing. This is punk music, by a punk band with an "in your face delivery of anti socialistic angst, and anger delivered with a sadistic grin. Next time you hear the name Violent Affair, or see it on a flyer, make a point to see their live show, better yet, be apart of their live show, it's easy, just let your inner child say "FUCK IT!."

This was first time seeing the The Dirty Mugs also. They were not "dirty", but well groomed, and had vests on ,slacks and hardsoled shoes on, AND gypsy like ladies with tambourines on each end of the stage. They have an early century, rustic, traveling band look to them I thought. Their sound was like Irish folk/pub style with a healthy dose of modern american songwriting. Though the delivery was different ,This was foot stomping, screaming ,fist pumping , accordion cranking, punk music! You had a feeling you were watching a celebration of comrades and family, each song deliverd with heart and vitality! Don't let their vagabond persona fool you, They will have you jumping ,stomping and raging, hardcore very early in their set!

The Street Dogs, were loud and raucous, seasoned entertainers, that really drew the crowd into their world , and onto their stage at times. The packed front stage floor was a cyclone of bodies,and swinging bodyparts. They set up each song with a witty story and a bit of humor, then hell on drums, strings and vocals would follow. My first time seeing them live actually wore me out. lol. I was literally beaten,kicked and elbowed ,braving the mosh pits to get the photos and video of the bands. I was even KNOCKED DOWN by the lead singer of Street Dogs, as he ran about the club during their set. I left after their 2 angry kids song, exhausted , ears ringing and headache throbbing. Which pretty much means , I HAD A BLAST!!!!

Saturday, June 9, 2012

Well, after seeing the video of For 12, last june, and listening to more songs of this band ,I was excited to know that they will be performing on mainstage at NMF5! This band is touring all over the world and I was glad they took time out to appear here , even tho they are from here, Stillwater exactly. Their music is so unique to me, vocal and indie acoustic, fokish, whatever you want to call it, it is done well. And now I wanted to see them all, in front of me , performing the songs I had only heard on the internet.

They sound like their cds, I mean Jesse's vox and the background vocals are all right on pitch and emoted just like the recordings we are used to hearing. There were technical glitches, where the sound completely cut out on stage, but they kept the show going and went on to deliver their most memorable songs in a most memorable way.

"For 12" was featured as KCRW's "Today's Top Tune" on October 27, 2010.

Other Lives finished working on their latest album Tamer Animals in February 2011. The album was released on May 10th 2011 in the USA and August 29th 2011 in UK/Europe.

In the summer of 2011, the band toured with S. Carey and The Rosebuds. Following a month of shows in the UK, the band joined Bon Iver in September in the USA and Canada and played at Iceland Airwaves festival. The band returned to the UK in October to support Chapel Club
in London on October 18th. The band will also play headline shows
across UK and Holland in October and November 2011. The band will open
for Radiohead
on the first leg of their 2012 North American tour in February and
March, 2012. Like Radiohead, the band is scheduled to play the 2012 Coachella Festival. [4]

In September 2011, Other Lives launched their Wirewax interactive website tameranimals.com
which was built around the band's official video for "For 12" and
allows users to access audio and visual content within the video.

Lean and Mean

The Pretty Black Chains keep rattling @ NMF5

When Pretty Black Chains appeared at Fassler Hall in January, it
arrived as a different band than the one that Tulsa audiences had been
accustomed to. The autumn departure of lead singer Kellen McGugan
initially put a halt on progress with the band, but after auditioning a
couple other singers, bassist Jonathan (Chuck) Martin, drummer Kurt
Freudenberger and guitarist Derek Knowlton decided to soldier on as trio
with Knowlton handling vocal duties.

Although the attrition in lineup has changed to presentation of the
band, it hasn't made the group any less explosive. McGugan's stage
presence channeled a young Mick Jagger, combined with a touch of Bowie
and a dash on Ian Astbury. Without his eclectic stage persona, you might
think Pretty Black Chains would lose part of its live impact, but you'd
be wrong. This year's showcase at SXSW was just as explosive as last
year's with the band finally hitting its groove as a power-trio.
McGugan's absence does take away an element, but it also leaves the band
more room to build upon its true strengths and explore a new landscape
sonically. If anything, the "power" in power trio comes out as the band
members feed off of each other and hit the audience with a wall of
energy and sound.

Keep
Rattling. A powerful musical trio, Pretty Black Chains' dynamic has
changed but the same wall of energy falls heavily on audiences when they
perform.

According to guitarist (and now lead vocalist) Derek Knowlton, the
band's last performance as a quartet occurred Aug. 27, 2011 at Dustbowl
Arts Market. When discussing McGugan's departure, Knowlton shared that
"To be honest, it was kind of out of the blue, but his heart just wasn't
in it anymore. I think the others were a little hurt and confused by
it, but I was kind of excited.

"I've always been in a band with a prominent front man," he continued
"and as a band, we kind of struggled with that when Kellen left. We
tried a couple of other singers, but finally made the decision to just
go on as a trio. It's different when you lose a guitarist or bassist or
drummer. People don't think as much of changing those members as they do
when the face of the band changes."

Even so, although the dynamic has changed a bit, the overall vibe has
continued on as the group decided to move forward with its core and not
bring in another member. That's likely made the transition easier, both
for the band and its established fan base. The transition has also
opened new doors for Knowlton and the rest of the band.

"For me, part of it has been an opportunity to establish myself more
as a songwriter and singer, not just as a guitarist, which is how I've
always been known," Knowlton said. "This is an opportunity to establish
that this is my band."

When we very first started, Chuck and I wrote everything together,"
he said. "Chuck had kids and got busy with his family and I opened
Warpaint (Knowlton's T-shirt business in OKC). I've got a basement
there, which gave me even more opportunity to play and write in my down
time."

Although the band recorded an initial group of songs for its debut
disc, Ceremonies, by the time the band had the disc ready for release,
it had already moved on to playing a whole different group of songs with
a different sound and direction. As a result, when Ceremonies was
finally released, the group included an additional disc with five demo
tracks of its new material and an indication of where the band was
headed next.

"When everyone heard Ceremonies they thought, 'Oh, I get it -- you're
a Strokes-like garage band,' but that was just that one moment in time.
It's just an ever evolving thing with this band. Now that Kellen's
gone, we've all started to sing. Some of the new songs don't even have
bass, it's guitar, drums and organ with three part harmonies, which
makes us sound all the more like Black Rebel Motorcycle Club during
their Howl period."

Even though Knowlton references Black Rebel, which was a definite
reference point on the band's last disc, Awakening, don't try and paint
the band into any corners. When the group played Fassler Hall in
January, it had already moved on from that last album and didn't play
any songs from the disc, rolling out a whole new set of songs. Not even
three months later, Knowlton shared that the band has continued to move
forward and is only playing about three of those songs now as the
direction and sound continues to evolve.

"Our sound is still changing," Knowlton acknowledged, "but as long as
we're the ones writing it, I think it will always sound like Pretty
Black Chains. We just won't get stuck in the rick riff thing. When
Kellen left, it actually allowed us to explore even more, sound wise."

Although the band's ever changing sound and set list can prove to be
challenging to audiences who are accustomed to a more static set list,
Knowlton views the band's role a bit differently than most. "I think, as
a local band, we're supposed to do that," he said. "We're supposed to
use the local crowd as a sounding board to work out new material, to
keep it fresh for them and us both."

ORIGINALLY POSTED IN URBAN TULSA WEEKLY.http://www.urbantulsa.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A48174

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

In early february, I was working with this band to help create their first music video. I had first listened to the upload of their new track Dirty Game, and was impressed
with the heavier sound . Actually the sound was a leap forward for the band in my opinion, and highlights the writing talent of lead vox Corley Moore.

I contacted Caleb Kerr and
asked about the music, lyrics and engineering of the tracks. And he told me it was recorded at Bradley Recording out of Edmond. Caleb Sent me the new songs and this one stood out
to me. It seemed like it wasa bit edgy and gritty. The screams leaped out at me and were unlike the other original songs from this band. I (video) recorded this band last year when they
performed at the Samurai, and it was the first time I met them. They sang mostly covers as I recall, and had a good rapport with the crowd,and lively performance, but I do not recall
any original songs of this caliber.

Caleb and I found ourselves discussing Images, and video interpretations of this song over the phone. I thought the song should be told by the
lead singers body language and facial expression. The bands fans were not used to seeing the bands faces and eyes, and expressions in the dark club lighting. so this would be something
see for them. I wanted the story and emotion to come thru clearly on Corleys face and eyes, and he delivered a riveting and exceptional performance in this video.

A majority of these
scenes had several takes as Corley reached inside and projected the soul and emotions of the lyrics into the videos performance. He really looks like a man on edge, losing it, at the
end of his rope and desperate to break free of a controlling and stifling plan that is not his own and makes him feel trapped. The powerful drums of Kris Ballenger , coupled with the
Lead guitar of Frank Zarones, and bass player, John Schmitz, all added to the this emotive, alternative rock composition. Good work guys!

Saturday, May 19, 2012

Ok, so... I had not been to a Junebug Spade performance in a while, nor the arts festival, so I decided to knock 2 birds out ,with one stone. I wanted to see the changes to to down town anyway. I do not agree with having the festival downtown, with all the 10 dollar parking, and construction, but I endured it anyway. I arrived early enough to catch the 411 band, with the beautiful and talented Cara Black performing on the water stage. Great to hear some 80s & 70s r&b that evening.

After that, Junebug Spade arrived, set up and started their set. The first two songs went well , but then they started having audio problems where the sound would cut out. This happened a couple songs in row, but they got it fixed just in time to peel off a couple of their new songs. (check out the video) They had fans in the crowd who called their names, and made new ones too i'm sure.

They have such a distinct modern retro sound which Peters voice seems to punctuate. The latest Album , Extra Virgin Olive Oil is out now and has all the restro rock sound of this band in a nice digitally mastered package of 6 songs. (link on the right )They are also playing at Swarzstock and currently touring other states.